Tag: proposed

A Russian military contractor is building huge drone tanks

A Russian weapons company named after the inventor of the AK-47 has revealed that it’s building a new type of unmanned combat vehicle . The firm states that its upcoming drone tank will carry both machine guns and anti-tank missiles, weighing 20 tons. While it has yet to release a prototype, we can get a vague idea of what to expect from the company’s previous work – the BAS-01G Soratnik. Weighing a fraction of the proposed new tank at just 7 tons, the Soratnik is a machine gun mounted infantry support vehicle equipped with anti-tank missiles. With a top speed of 25 miles, the mini-tank can be operated from a range of up to six miles and is even able to carry out certain tasks autonomously. Unfortunately, the firm is remaining tight-lipped on exactly what the tank can do without human orders. As the zippy 7-ton Soratnik is already on the market carrying similar weaponry, it raises the question of how useful the proposed tank would be if it’s three times larger. Still, with Kalashnikov Concern being partly state-owned, the Russian government’s seal of approval might help encourage others to invest in the bulky behemoth. Source: Popular Mechanics

View original post here:
A Russian military contractor is building huge drone tanks

Germany calls for a ban on combustion engine cars by 2030

Germany isn’t content with relying on financial incentives to usher in an era of pollution-free cars. The country’s Bundesrat (federal council) has passed a resolution calling for a ban on new internal combustion engine cars by 2030. From then on, you’d have to buy a zero-emissions vehicle, whether it’s electric or running on a hydrogen fuel cell . This isn’t legally binding, but the Bundesrat is asking the European Commission to implement the ban across the European Union… and when German regulations tend to shape EU policy, there’s a chance that might happen. The council also wants the European Commission to review its taxation policies and their effect on the “stimulation of emission-free mobility.” Just what that means isn’t clear. It could involve stronger tax incentives for buying zero-emissions cars, but it could also involve eliminating tax breaks for diesel cars in EU states. Automakers are already worried that tougher emission standards could kill diesels — remove the low cost of ownership and it’d only hasten their demise. Not that the public would necessarily be worried. Forbes notes that registrations of diesels, still mainstays of the European car market, dropped sharply in numerous EU countries in August. There’s a real possibility that Volkswagen’s emission cheating scandal is having a delayed effect on diesel sales. Combine that with larger zero-emissions incentives and the proposed combustion engine ban, and it might not take much for Europeans to go with electric or hydrogen the next time they go car shopping. Via: Forbes , Gizmodo Source: Der Spiegel (translated)

Taken from:
Germany calls for a ban on combustion engine cars by 2030